In politics, there are an infinate number of stops before you reach a "yes" or "no."

How else to interpret the words of a campaign strategist about Secretary of State Elaine Marshall's current stance on running for U.S. Senate next year against Sen. Richard Burr?

Marshall is "pretty seriously leaning towards" running, strategist Thomas Mills told CQ Politics.

That's an absolute possibly.

"She's gotten very strong feedback both in state and in Washington," Mills told CQ Politics.

The squishy certainty comes as U.S. Rep. Mike McIntyre, a potential brand name candidate, decided not to run against Burr. And CQ is at least the second Washington-based publication that has carried gelatinously concrete thinking about running from Marshall.

Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, are you getting all this?

U.S. Sen. Richard Burr is attentive to black constituents, a news report says.

An article in CQ Politics Monday noted that the Winston-Salem Republican has done a lot of "political legwork" on issues important to the black community:

In February, Burr introduced legislation (S 413) aimed at boosting graduation rates for low-income and minority students, an issue on which he has teamed up with Pennsylvania Democratic Rep. Chaka Fattah , whose district includes Philadelphia.

He has been involved in efforts to combat sickle cell disease and to reauthorize the Healthy Start program, which is designed to reduce infant mortality and the number of babies born at low weights. Both issues disproportionately affect African-Americans.

The article also notes that Burr has helped get federal money for Central Piedmont Community College, N.C. Central University, a community center in Rocky Mount and a sewage treatment plant in Durham.

In 2004, only 12 percent of his votes came from black constituents.

Hat Tip: CitizenOpinionated

The Cook Political Report ranks North Carolina a presidential "toss-up."

Noted Washington political analyst Charlie Cook has previously included the state's 15 Electoral College votes in the "Leans Republican" category.

He is the first of the big three analysts to say the state is in play. The Rothenberg Political Report still calls the state "Leans McCain," while CQ Politics says it "Leans Republican."

However, MSNBC's political editors, Republican consultant Karl Rove and the Atlantic Monthly have said it is a toss-up.

Two top national analysts say the Senate race is a tossup.

The Rothenberg Political Report says that the race between U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole and Democrat Kay Hagan is now a "toss-up."

"Elizabeth Dole has been damaged by a barrage of Democratic attacks," the report notes, adding that Dole is in "the fight of her political life for a second term." 

Meantime, Congressional Quarterly's CQ Politics has moved the race to "No Clear Favorite," saying that recent polling "suggests that Dole does indeed have her hands full in fending off Hagan."

It notes taht Dole has a resume and a "nearly universally recognized name" that are advantages, but may not be enough:

The only question is whether this resume, an advantage to Dole when she won the 2002 contest for the seat left open by the retirement of five-term Republican Sen. Jesse Helms, is less of a bulwark in an election year in which the presidential nominees of both major parties, Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain , are campaigning on platforms of "change" and pledges to shake up the Washington political establishment.

Did Barack Obama extend health care for wounded troops?

Did John McCain oppose legislation to pay for flood control programs?

Let's check the Truth-O-Meter.

The Truth-O-Meter is a new feature on Dome that we hope you will find useful as the presidential campaigns heat up. It's a service offered by CQ Politics and the St. Petersburg Times to fact check statements by and about the presidential candidates.

We've embedded it in the left-hand column, along with a link to our own Claims Department fact checks of North Carolina candidates. (We're working on making that a bit more user-friendly. Stay tuned.)